The ultimate guide to enjoying the Olympics

Hey gamers! Welcome to Installer No. 115, your go-to source for the coolest and quirkiest finds in the gaming universe. If you’re new here, welcome aboard! This week, I’ve been diving into some intriguing reads about tech and media, catching up on classic films like Independence Day and Jurassic Park, and gearing up for the Olympics, which I plan to binge-watch. I’ve also been exploring the sleek design of Paso, brushing up on Furby lore for an upcoming segment, and attempting to get Claude to help tidy up my overflowing email inbox.

I’ve got some great tips for watching sports in the coming weeks, an exciting update for a bookmarking app, a bunch of nostalgic gems, and more. Plus, I want to hear about your favorite non-Big Tech apps! I’ve received tons of suggestions about email clients, productivity tools, and messaging apps, and I’m eager to gather even more. Let’s jump right in!

The Drop
* Peacock’s Gold Zone: Not exactly new, but a must-know! Gold Zone is the ultimate way to catch the Olympics, showcasing the most thrilling moments as they happen. If you’re in the US, Peacock is hands down the best app for Olympic viewing, and I’m ready to get lost in it for the next few weeks.
* Raindrop.io Stella: A major AI-driven upgrade to my favorite bookmarking tool. It’s now way easier to search, ask questions, and interact with your bookmarks. After trying out several alternatives, I’m back to Raindrop, and this update couldn’t have come at a better time.
* Super Nintendo: Nintendo is truly one of a kind. Keza MacDonald’s book dives into the company’s history, blending business and gaming narratives. I’ve just started it, and I’m already hooked. (Stay tuned for an excerpt coming soon!)
* Codex for Mac: OpenAI’s desktop app is making waves, and I’ve heard good things about it. The Automations feature has caught my eye, and I plan to use it to keep my Downloads folder organized.
* The Muppet Show: The Muppets were a huge part of my childhood, and it’s wild that my kids haven’t seen much of them. This new special features modern stars like Sabrina Carpenter and Seth Rogen while retaining that timeless charm. I’m determined to make my kids watch it repeatedly.
* “You are being misled about renewable energy technology”: After catching Alec on the insightful State of the Workflow series, I’ve been binge-watching Technology Connections. This particular episode is going viral for good reason; it’s a compelling mix of rationality and frustration.
* Dragon Quest VII Reimagined: It seems like every week brings a remastered classic that makes me nostalgic. This series has been around for 40 years, and while the graphics might not be for everyone, I bet many will enjoy revisiting this title.
* The RetroVa Vintage Imaging Kit: A Kickstarter project worth watching. This company’s smartphone lens extenders have worked well on Vivo and Oppo devices, so I’m hopeful it’ll perform just as well on iPhones. Just a heads-up: some features may require a proprietary app.
* Queen of Chess: Before this documentary hit Netflix, I knew little about Judit Polgár, the youngest chess grandmaster ever at just 15. Her story is incredible, and the film captures the essence of chess beautifully, reminiscent of Queen’s Gambit.

Screen Share
A couple of weeks ago, I stumbled upon an essay titled “Phantom Obligation,” which has been on my mind ever since. It poses a fun question: Why do RSS readers resemble email clients? Terry Godier’s essay presents a thought-provoking argument about how we consume information and the need to rethink outdated interface concepts.

Terry’s essay gained traction, especially when he announced he was developing an app called Current, which aims to improve the medium. This week, he also shared his insights on the podcast landscape. I appreciate his perspective on products, so I asked him to share his homescreen to see what apps he’s into.

Here’s Terry’s homescreen, along with some details about his favorite apps:
The phone: iPhone 17 Pro Max.
The wallpaper: On the lockscreen, a stunning, surreal image of the moon from a mountain range with no atmosphere. The homescreen is solid black—either a blend of all colors or none at all; I’m not sure which, but it’s definitely one of them.

The apps: Find My, Fastmail, Fantastical, ChatGPT, Claude, Carrot Weather, Photos, Things, Reddit, Instagram, Margin, Current, Ivory, Are.na, Bear, Recollect, Phone, Messages, Safari.

In the top left, I have a folder for home automation apps (still working on my HomeAssistant setup). Find My is there because my kids love tracking where Mom is. Fastmail is my email provider, and I use Fantastical for its natural language calendar notifications—my life runs on calendar invites.

My media folder includes Nugs (for streaming concert videos), Music, Patreon, and my trusty AI buddies ChatGPT and Claude. Carrot Weather is also in the mix, so I guess I have three robot friends now. I’ve got two note-taking apps: Bear (a classic) and Recollect.fyi, a PWA created by my friend Jon that I absolutely love.

I also asked Terry to share some of his current favorites:
* Shows: Fallout, The Chair Company, Star Trek: TNG, Pluribus, Superstore
* (Recently watched) movies: Eddington, Master and Commander, Zootopia 2 (kids…)
* Listening: Thrice, anything by Motown bassist James Jamerson, Van Halen, and Thelonious Monk

Crowdsourced
Here’s what the Installer community is enjoying this week. I want to hear your recommendations too! Email me or message me on Signal with your favorite finds, and we’ll feature some of the best here each week. For even more suggestions, check out the replies to this post on Threads and Bluesky.

“I took an old mini desktop PC and installed Batocera to play emulated games with a slick front end, earning RetroAchievements while revisiting classics!” — Chris
“Timothy Zahn’s Heir to the Empire trilogy is considered the best Star Wars book series. I loved it and highly recommend the Audible versions with voice acting and sound effects!” — Noah
“I started using Fitera to track my workouts. If you were manually importing workout notes into Excel, this app solves that problem beautifully, and the design is stunning!” — Athan
“Watching the new series of Um, Actually on Dropout, plus rewatching my favorite shows like Game Changer and VIP. I can’t get enough of Dropout!” — Andrew
“Switching to Linux Mint has eliminated all the Windows bloat and revitalized my eight-year-old laptop; it’s so much faster and more enjoyable to use now!” — Sleepy
“I recommend the podcast/YouTube channel BS Phototime, featuring two talented photographers. Their less gear-focused discussions on the art of photography are refreshing.” — Mark
“Watching Wonder Man! It feels like the LA LA Land of Marvel.” — Jeremy
“I’m reading Chronicles of a Liquid Society, Umberto Eco’s last book, a collection of editorials that read like blog posts. Some topics are amusingly outdated.” — Rich

Signing Off
Last week, thanks to Chris Mims, I explored the BBC Archive’s YouTube channel, which led the algorithm to serve me a treasure trove of vintage TV segments—and honestly, I’m loving it.

Between enjoying classic clips from the old Top Gear crew and watching early news segments about personal computing and the internet, I’ve been transported to a time when PCs were a challenge to use, Elon Musk was just a startup guy, and Jeff Bezos was merely a bookseller. It’s been both nostalgic and enlightening to revisit an era when new tech was genuinely exciting—and a reminder to consider the implications of innovations before they become mainstream. New tech can be fantastic; we just need to ensure it stays that way.

Catch you next week!